


Brothers.

by Metalkatt



Category: Shadow Hearts (Video Games)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2005-06-18
Updated: 2005-06-18
Packaged: 2021-03-10 01:33:59
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,495
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27886069
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Metalkatt/pseuds/Metalkatt
Summary: This is basically an introspection piece as Yuri compares Keith and Joachim in his mind, with the assumption that he has fed both of them many times.  If you squint, you might be able to make pairings out of it, but it's really not written with that in mind.





	Brothers.

Yuri sat back a bit, shifting to get a little more comfortable, and he felt Joe break their connection for a moment to allow the movement. "It's all right; you don't have to stop. Sitting up just hurts my back, is all." He felt the brush of cheek against his jaw, then the slight ache of Joe's teeth burying themselves in his flesh once more.

Crimson eyes closed a moment in a wince, then opened to take in another look at the room around them. Whitewashed walls turning beige with time held in furnishings that looked to be older than Yuri, with upholstery that was well-taken care of, but worn. Yet another inn where the owners were suffering because of the war, and since the group didn't have much money, it was all they could afford. Many times, they'd work off their stay by cooking, chopping wood, or in the white wolf Blanca's case, ratting the property, though it always brought an ache to his heart to see their hosts' disappointed looks when they turned up cashless.

The slight, musty smell was ameliorated by the open windows, and while the Cannes breeze smelled of fish and seaweed, it was better than stifling mould. Long fingers traced idly through short, blond hair as they rested on the bed, Yuri in just his jeans and bare feet, with Joachim a large, warm presence denting the bed beside him. It always hurt when they fed--no matter how many times Keith had sipped neatly from him, nor how many times Joachim nuzzled in close--pain was one constant of feeding the resident vampire. However, it gave Yuri something to focus on after having discovered that it wasn't an unpleasant experience. He'd been able to feel his conscious flowing into first Keith, and now Joe, and the meshing of souls was very reminiscent of the way he'd connected with Alice. Yuri knew that for as long as he lived, he would be able to distinguish between the two brothers if they were to feed from him.

Though both Earth classes, Joachim had to be the more… earthy of the two, Yuri thought as he held the large man's head to his neck. Although short on brains, Joe was more connected, more grounded, more alive than Keith. He was also a lot broader, which made feeding him a bit difficult. When Joe had shown signs of listlessness and carelessness not long after they left the Wine Cellar, Yuri had started to understand why the man seemed so familiar to him. It wasn't until he'd sliced his arm open in a battle and seen how Joe couldn't take his eyes off the wound that it had clicked. To everyone's surprise, Yuri had held his arm up to the wrestler, and had not been shocked by the rapture in the blond's expression as he'd lapped at the blood. He remembered the team's shocked gasps as Joe had nearly lifted him off the ground to feed from him, and the awkward explanations that had come afterwards.

Joe, though not as curious as his brother, seemed painfully young in some ways, eternally naïve in a way Keith hadn't been. The younger vampire had been detached, rather removed from life and living, though none of them had ever questioned that since the man lived in an old castle which was filled with monsters, spirits, and bones. It had taken time to wake Keith up and show him how life was, something Yuri hadn't had to do with Joe. Keith was more suave, and much sleeker than his brother, and regarded everything with a scientific detachment that even Zhuzhen had taken for a normal behavioural trait for an immortal. The blond had even taken Meiyuan's invasive 'ministrations' during their acupuncture sessions in stride, 'ministrations' that had left deep, confused scars in Yuri's mind, as well as the minds of the other men he'd had as travelling companions at the time.

When Yuri had provided nourishment for Keith in the beginning, it had been a matter of strength. Alice had been too small, Zhuzhen too old, and Margarete had not been to Keith's taste. A chuckle escaped the Harmonixer's mouth as he remembered Keith's statement that she'd had too much of a blend to her, and how he hadn't been able to stomach much of it. Yuri had even tried different fusion classes for Keith, to see if any worked better or worse than the others at keeping the vampire fed. He'd found Air too be to bitter, and Earth the most filling; however, Keith developed a taste for both the Light and the Dark, and it had taken awhile to figure out how to get the man fed with Czernobog without accidentally casting Revelation. Amon's blood had been more of a jolt than either of them had been prepared for, but it was off the Seraphic Radiance that the vampire would get utterly drunk. Yuri and the others had spent an entire week in Ireland tracking him down, where he was indulging himself in the food, drink, and dance of the Celtic culture. Thankfully, Keith hadn't felt the need to feed off a human in that time, and the villagers remained unaware of Keith's exotic nature. When the liquid had finally run its course, Margarete had taken great delight in making up stories about things the poor man had supposedly done, only to be shushed by Zhuzhen when caught out. It was the only time Yuri could remember Keith being so passionate and alive.

Joachim, by contrast, was vital and intense from the beginning. Even his colouring reflected his vibrancy, from the healthy tinge to his skin to the gold highlights on his blond curls. Where Keith had accepted things with the curiosity of a neophyte, Joe had much more definite opinions about what he did and didn't like. Yuri wondered if it had anything to do with studying under Gama for so long--Keith had had no teacher to bring him up in the world of people, only one who kept him in a library in the world of books. Joe had formed a bond with the children and the barkeeper in Le Havre that went far beyond the one that Nina had cultivated with Keith in Bistritz. Yuri tried to imagine a young Joachim tending to his pale, small brother, and it made him chuckle.

Joachim pulled away another moment, giving Yuri's neck a little lap, and it brought the Harmonixer's attention to the warm, solid body snuggled against--and partly on--his own. "Stop it," the blond mumbled in sleepy tones. "The more you distract me, the longer it takes." Yuri reached up to thread his fingers through thick ringlets once more, nodding and pressing in to encourage the resumption. Joe always took much longer than Keith ever did to feed, but he did it at a much slower pace.

Both brothers were able to eat normal food, though it didn't sustain them; they did it for the sheer pleasure in the act. Both enjoyed meat and vegetables, but as with people and situations, Joe had more of an idea as to his tastes--he had a liking for chocolate, but not caramel, and avoided wine like the plague. Keith had always tried everything, no matter what it was made of. When it came to different fusion classes, Joachim preferred the heat of Fire at night, and the entrancement of Darkness when he was feeling down. Air was too bitter for his palate, and Yuri found it interesting that both of them had chosen the same word to describe the taste. It was at that point the Harmonixer had decided that there must be something in the blood that affects the magic he could work when he fused with the other forms. He had to be careful about feeding Joachim as Miserati--the sweet clarity of the liqueur had nearly cost Yuri his life, as they both had fallen asleep, with Joachim still imbibing. Yuri was almost afraid of what could happen if Joe ever tasted the dark seraph inside his soul.

A lessening of the ache, and the draw of textured flesh over his pulse signalled Joachim's resignation to the power of Morpheus. Yuri closed his eyes, finding the Light and Water inside him to heal the marks, removing all trace of the feeding. He shifted to move, only to realise that the wrestler's broad form was pinning him to the bed, one arm looped about Yuri's midsection to keep him put. The Harmonixer hadn't planned on playing pillow to anyone but Blanca, but it wasn't unexpected; Joachim had a tendency to fall asleep on him in a very literal sense at the ends of these sessions. A shake of the head, and Yuri snuggled in, brushing the tip of his nose over the blond's broad one before closing his eyes, and let the hum of Joe's breathing put him to sleep.


End file.
